1. The Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to exercise devices and more generally to methods, systems, and devices for selectively modifying a resistance level of an exercise device.
2. The Relevant Technology
In recent years, there has been a trend towards the use of exercise equipment, whether it is at a gym or at home. Although gym exercise equipment provides many benefits to an exercising user, it is typically expensive to become a member of the gym and usually time consuming and inconvenient to exercise at the gym. Many individuals are turning to home exercise equipment to obtain the health benefits associated with daily exercising.
Although home exercise equipment is more convenient to use, in many instances the devices are cumbersome and difficult to use. For instance, many multi-gym exercise devices use free weights or other heavy weights to provide resistance during an exercise regime. These weights make positioning and subsequent movement of the exercise device difficult. Typically, once a multi-gym device has been set-up in one position, it will remain there for a significant amount of time without being moved. When the device is to be moved, the owner must spend a long period to dismantle the device, move the parts to the new position within the home, and reassemble the exercise device. Additionally, use of such a multi-gym device requires the user to set aside a significant amount of space within the user's home. This reduces the livable space within the home and typically requires that an area of the home be dedicated to the performance of exercise regimes. It would be preferential to have an exercise device that is mobile and capable of being repositioned to allow the user to utilize the space within his or her home.
Typical exercise devices use weights to provide resistance to an exercising user. The selection of weights may be difficult to achieve before and during an exercise regime. Additionally, selection of a particular resistance is limited to the incremental weights provided with the exercise device. For instance, the adjustability of the exercise device to a particular weight is often limited by the minimum numerical weight value of the weights included with the exercise device. It would be beneficial to have an exercise device where very small incremental changes in the exercise resistance were possible.
In addition to the above, the adjustability of the exercise device limits the usability of the exercise device. Many exercise devices require removal of pins and repositioning of weights to vary the resistance applied to an exercising user. This may be time consuming and difficult to achieve depending the particular configuration of the exercise device. Over time, there is a high likelihood that the pins associated with the exercise device will become lost, thereby preventing a user exercising using the exercise device.
Some exercise devices attempt to overcome the limitations associated with the use of heavy weights to provide resistance to an exercising user. These exercising devices may utilize gas or fluid cylinders that provide a resistance as a user exercises upon the exercise device. A gas or fluid within an interior chamber of the cylinder may flow through a variable restriction member that may govern the resistance applied by the cylinder. For instance, when the restriction member allows a high flow rate of fluid therethrough, the resistance applied by the cylinder is low. Similarly, when the restriction member allows a low flow rate, the cylinder provides a high resistance to the exercising user.
Although beneficial in reducing the overall weight of an exercise device, and thereby enabling repositioning of an exercise device in a simple and efficient manner, the effectiveness and long-term usage of certain gas cylinders may be limited. Over time, the gas or fluid contained within the cylinder may leak. This can result in the cylinder providing a lesser amount of resistance than was possible when the cylinder was newly manufactured.
Based upon the above, it would beneficial to have an exercise device that is simple to position through reducing the overall weight of the exercise device, while providing a resistance mechanism that is easily adjustable, while maintaining the level of resistance associated with the exercise device over a long period.